Ascension of the Damned

AN: Because Dark Descent is now moving along, I've decided to update this fic as well. So here is the latest chapter of the fic, after having posted it at fanfiction.net a while ago. This fic will not connect to Dark Descent directly, but the characters featured here are important to what's going on over there, so it'll be important for you to read what's happening later on in this fic if you want to get a full understanding of this alternate universe, and how it's different from the games.

For convenience's sake, I've posted all three chapters of the story here at once, so that you can catch up on the story. Happy reading!

 

Note: Julie is not directly related to Dahlia Gillespie.

 

Chapter 3 – The Lake View Hotel

Complete darkness was an unsettling thing. Few things could throw a person off balance like finding oneself in a sudden void of pitch black, especially if it occurred in close-knit quarters. Many people would attest that there was nothing scarier than being confined in a tight, dark space. It was in such a situation that many experienced firsthand some of the more unpleasant, and perhaps shameful, parts of their psyches. Some folks dealt with it surprisingly well. Others felt nothing less than genuine terror. And although they might not admit it, most people fell into the latter category. Bravery did not stand up well to such instinctive claustrophobia.

Julie Summers awoke with a start. She wasn’t sure whether she was awake at first. She couldn’t see anything at first, not even the barest hint of light. It was dark all around her. She tried to move, but her surroundings seemed unusually tight. Still, she thought nothing of it at first. It was only when she stretched out an arm that she noticed something was wrong. Her elbow hit something solid. Julie was momentarily stumped. What was going on here? It felt muggy and confining in here, like she was in some

It took a moment to register what was occurring. She reached out experimentally with both arms and encountered a solid barrier, a few inches from her face. It felt like rough wood against her fingertips. She pushed gently against the barrier, but the barrier didn’t move.

Julie felt a rising feeling of dread welling up inside her. She pressed more insistently against the barrier, but the wall still didn’t give. It was only a second before it hit her. She was trapped in some kind of confined space, with no way out and no idea what was in there with her.

Julie began to panic. She gave a forceful push against the course wood. “Help,” she pleaded, hoping there was somebody around to hear her. “Somebody help me!” she shouted against the barrier, not sure if this was a dream or something, and not particularly caring at the moment. She screamed repeatedly for help, pushing feverishly against the obstacle in her path. Her blows became more savage with every passing moment, and she was trembling uncontrollably from the panic. She pounded furiously with both fists, banging desperately against the lid to whatever this was. Out of desperation, she tried punching the barrier as hard as she could with her palm, hoping it wasn’t nailed down or other sealed impenetrably.

When she least expected it, the lid slammed to the side, and the light of daylight reached her eyes. Julie jumped out the deathtrap in a dash, breathing hard and bracing herself against her knees. Sweat was splattered across her forehead and she was trying to get a grip on herself, to little avail. She felt like she was going to throw up, and it was almost like she had suffered a heat stroke. Fortunately, the cool air of the outside environment enabled her to recover, and eventually she stood up, still feeling her heart beating wildly, and tired, but much more composed. She wiped the sweat from her forehead, still slightly out of breath. What the hell had happened to her? And where was she?

It wasn’t until she investigated her surroundings a little that the macabre nature of her situation hit her. She wanted to know what she had been confined in, so she turned around to examine the stretch of highway that lay before her, and it was then that she realized why everything had been so confined and why she had had trouble breathing.

She had been in a coffin.



An icy chill went down Julie’s spine. The thought of being in her own grave made her feel awfully sick, and she couldn’t stop herself from shaking. A distraught, upset feeling rose up inside her, one that she was hard-pressed to conceal. What kind of sick monsters would put her in that horrible confinement?! And why didn’t she remember any of it? What the hell was going on here – and why was it happening to her?!

She wrapped her arms in an attempt to warm herself from the cold feeling that now swept her body, and stop the uncontrollable shivering wracking everything on her.

It took quite a few minutes for her to calm herself down, and she took a breath to recover her reserve. She felt disoriented and tired, even though she hadn’t carried out any physical exertion. Her brain felt muddled: like there was a cloud of fog over her mind.

“What happened to me?” she asked herself, holding a hand against her forehead.

She remembered vague images of something occurring, but she couldn't remember what. There was darkness, a sense of fleeing and something intimidating, but everything was hazy.

The last thing she remembered clearly was waiting for Alessa; she called from the mall saying she was going to be late...

Alessa!

Julie went into panic mode. What if something happened to Alessa? And what if she arrived at home and realized she wasn't there? She wanted badly to rush somewhere and try to find some way to call home. Suddenly she realized what she was doing and took a deep breath. The worry was still there, gnawing at her stomach with every second. But she quickly forced herself to calm down anyway. She wasn't going to do anyone good if she started to go insane with worry. She had to find someone to help her and tell her exactly where she was.

She tried to think back to what happened at home before her view went dark and foggy. Suddenly a flash of images assaulted her, startling her physically. She had a feeling something bad was lurking there, and now that she thought about it, she wasn't sure that she wanted to remember.

Julie drew her arms close to her. Suddenly she felt cold. Was it cold in this place, or was it her?

The environment around her was not particularly optimistic. The buildings looked bleak and the mist was heavy amidst them, and the desolation was outstanding. There didn't seem to be a single soul anywhere around her. It looked like no attention had been paid to these buildings in a very long time. The wind occasionally picked up in strength, making her shudder as a chill swept through her. Where the hell was she, that there wasn't even the slightest sign of human habitation besides the structures?

She began to walk aimlessly in the hopes of finding out. With any luck, she could find someone who could tell her where she was. The fog was thick in the air and she could barely see where she was going, were it not for the large shapes of the buildings on either side of her. And where was everybody? She had never seen a town this deserted before, ever. Was she in a ghost town? Or had something happened to the people? She had heard of such places before, but she never thought she would actually visit one.

On the other hand, she'd actually been dragged here...

She thought back to the way she'd been introduced to this town, in a less than pleasant manner. She had been put into a coffin and left out in the open, to claw her way out of it. What kind of sick mind concocted something like that?

And why didn't they kill her when they had the chance?

Too many questions, and not enough answers. She was grateful to be alive, make no mistake, but she really wanted to know why she had been brought here. Why her, of all people? It wasn't like there was anything special about her, except for a couple of family members.

Finally she came across a form in the road.

Julie was thrilled to see what looked like a person. Could this be someone who could help her? It looked like they were lying on the ground, but anybody would be something.

“Hey! Are you all right?” she called out.

No response.

They could be hurt, was Julie's first thought. She rushed towards the unmoving form. She wasn't armed, but if the person was dangerous, she would deal with that when the time came. Maybe they were sleeping? She thought to herself. In the middle of the road? That was kind of weird, but she wasn't about to question it without being certain of what was going on here.

Realizing the potential benefits, she went ahead to see if she could help. Julie got a closer look as she approached. She saw a shape of a dark fabric that could be some sort of robe or blanket draped over their form.



It was only when she was very close that she realized something wasn't right here. This person didn't seem like a person at all; it wasn't moving at all. Was it dead? She got an awful feeling in her stomach. Had she stumbled upon a dead body? She got as close as she dared while being cautious. And that was when her thought process came to a halt. This wasn't a person. This wasn't a costume. This...this was something else. She nudged it with her boot, and to her shock, she got a glimpse of two faces, not one, lying under the upper part of the garment.

She drew back in shock, gasping. My god, what was this thing? She thought in astonishment. She had never seen anything like it. Its form was huge, and yet, there was no indication of a regular body underneath. A pair of arms stretched out from under the cloak, elongated and thicker than usual, with huge, pronounced hands.

And its face...Julie didn't dare look underneath to see what was there again. The glimpse of that bald, human-like face she had gotten was enough for her.

What the hell was going on here? How the hell could something like this exist (besides the obvious demon-related explanation)? Suddenly she felt very vulnerable without a handgun or other weapon. If there were more of these things around, she was going to need some protection.

Julie continued to walk in the misty blankness, scanning for any signs of a weapon she could use. The grounds were depressingly empty. There was nothing but sticks and rocks lining the sidewalks, neither of which would last long against an assailant.

The stores weren't anything to brag about either. None of them stood out as an obvious hardware shop, which made sense, considering she wouldn't be that lucky. But she wondered if there was something inside them she could appropriate...

Her eyes fell upon a store that looked to be some kind of crafts barn, and that was when she got the idea. The store housed a display of craft and pottery equipment behind an enormous plate glass window – perfect for a makeshift entrance. She picked up a rock of a large size, and standing at a safe distance, she hurled it at the plate glass window. The window shattered in the middle as a hold was neatly formed, as she expected. The hole was still not big enough for a human to pass through, though. Grabbing a stick from beside the store, she smashed it at the window while shielding her eyes to prevent any flying fragments from entering. Finally the glass was broken completely. Julie made her way inside, carefully stepping over the glass.

The store was rather mundane. Signs and pamphlets littered the ground, along with broken glass. Shelves lined the somewhat crowded area of the store, filled with pottery and craft items, along with tools for watering plants and packets of many various seeds. It seemed the store was a nursery, too. Plants lined the back shelves and front portion of the store in many different shapes and sizes. There were other things as well; balloons and decorations, it seemed like, but she didn't pay them much attention.



Julie stepped up to the front counter. She didn't think she would find anything useful here, but she had to make sure. She spotted a handwritten note on the counter. Picking it up and reading it, she realized it was a note to the employees in the store.

“Welcome to our 25th anniversary grand re-opening! We hope you'll enjoy

working with us and growing to be part of our family, as we have for the

past 25 years. Be sure to check out our inventory! There are new acacia seeds

that we're sure will be a big hit with the tourists.

Check out the White Claudia plants too, while you're at it. They seem to go

really quickly around here!



        - Meredith Vielli”

   

Ugh, Julie thought to herself. White Claudia. Now there was something she wanted nothing to do with. Suddenly she realized what was blatantly obvious. White Claudia? There was only one place that produced that specific flower, and it wasn't one she wanted to contemplate. There was no way. It had to be a coincidence! It couldn't be. Her luck couldn't be that bad, that she would end up in the one place she never hoped to see again.

She wanted badly to rush out and check if it was true. But she realized she had to keep calm, and she decided to look around the rest of the store. There wasn't much to speak of. And the gardening tools, while effective, would be too large to carry around. A spade wouldn't do much damage either, so that was out despite being smaller. She had to find something smaller, yet with enough punch to do some serious damage if necessary. And then she noticed a pole lying on the ground. A metal pole. It had fallen off a display near the window she came through, and was about two-and-a-half feet long. The perfect length for a makeshift weapon. It didn't seem like it would bend easily either, and she gripped it firmly in her hand, feeling some sense of comfort now that she had a method of defending herself.

Julie rushed outside the store. The scenery and buildings were still the same, but now she looked at them through new, enlightened eyes. She found it hard to look at them the same way again, and her attention was drawn to the hill ahead. The mountain was still green, but it was clearer now in her mind and she recognized the shades of foliage that stood out. And lurking at the top of the hill was a building she would recognize anywhere. It was the only proof she needed of her suspicion.

Julie shuddered as the wind picked up speed around her. A sense of dread built up inside her, as she contemplated the situation she now found herself in. Everything seemed colder now; scarier. Whatever small comfort she had from finding a weapon was gone. She doubted a thousand coats would have kept her warm.

She wished she could tell herself she was mistaking, but there was no denying it. The signs were too many. The evidence spoke for itself, and it told of a place that had remained never-too-far in her mind, despite her best attempts to do otherwise.

And now she finally realized where she was.

She was in Silent Hill.

~*~

Julie stood dumbfounded, staring at the distant hill. It was an interesting thing, realizing you were in a place you had vowed never to return to, out of no accord of your own. People would definitely have adverse reactions in such a situation, ranging from casual to extreme. Other people might have panicked or screamed. Julie sat on the ground, simply staring at the mountain in the distance. For the longest time she remained sitting there, until she realized she wasn't going to find out why she had been brought here if she simply sat there all day long. She had to get moving if she wanted to find the answers to her questions.

Few people would understand the impact that Silent Hill had had on her life. It was one of the places that was central to it, but not all of it was pleasant. There were memories here that were better left in the past. She had vowed never to return to this place. The reasons were too many to list why. And now she found herself here without explanation, without motive.

It would be better if she had been forced to come here. At least then she would have control of the situation, if she were the one making the decision to return. But as it stood now, all she could do was wonder what this town had in store for her, since the town seemingly called her to it by herself.

She had heard the rumors, of course - that it called people through mysterious means, and once they went there, they never returned. But she never thought she would be the one to experience it herself.

Even if she had lived there once...

There was a dirt road that led up to the mountain, barred by a metal gate of antique design. Julie decided to follow it. There was no other place to go, after all. She already knew it would lead up to the hotel, and that was one familiar place she was anxious to see in person, to see how it changed. And if she was fortunately, that was definitely one place where she might get some help.

She walked the incline path for several minutes. The foliage was beautiful along the sides of the path. It was obvious these were a series of well-kept gardens, designed to entice visitors with their beauty, and keep them coming back over and over again. It gave her the feeling of being in a quiet little place in the mountainside, away from the city, which was definitely where she was. She kept a close eye on her surroundings, but there was no need to be alarmed. Occasionally there was a sound in the bushes, but the path was still for the most part.

It took her twenty-five minutes to walk the path, and she was tired from going uphill by the time she reached the summit. The building was much closer than she realized, but the incline made it a bit of an effort, going up rather than down. And when she finally saw the dwelling she had reached, she was more than a little overwhelmed.

Classic old-time architecture of the late 1900s formed a massive, imposing structure that looked stood out beautifully against the backdrop of natural hills and fog-shrouded atmosphere. The magnificent building loomed overhead, filling her with a sense of awestruck mulling and wonder. Without a doubt, it was the most beautiful structure in this town.  

The Lake View Hotel.

This place hadn't changed at all, she thought, marveling at the hotel's beautiful architecture. A miracle, considering there was nobody to take care of it. Did it just look pretty on the outside and was all moldy and rusting on the inside?

She remembered when she and Chris had come here for their honeymoon. They had been on the last leg of their trip back from St. Croix and had decided to stay the week at the hotel, to stay away from the inner portion of the town for a few more days. She was blown away by naturally soothing the atmosphere here was. The area was so serene, so peaceful, it breathed calmness into her soul and rejuvenated both of them. It was hard to believe an area like that could exist, especially given what she knew about the town.

It was then that she truly came to believe Silent Hill was a sacred place. She was convinced, and so was Chris, that this could only be a place that had avoided the corrupting influences of the world and retained its natural mystical power.

How quickly things changed in life.



Passing the ornate gate blocking the path, there was an area with a couple of fountains and some very well-kept grass, along with a stone bench to sit on. It was obvious this was the back portion of the hotel; she could see a porch with a beautiful wooden door leading inside the hotel.

There was a dock nearby, leading down from the yard. The fog was thick along the wooden dock, but Julie could see a rowboat settled along the dock. Julie shuddered to think where it could lead. She got a weird feeling when she thought about where that rowboat led to in the fog. She saw a light was shining on a lamppost - presumably it was to lead someone in if someone was crossing from the other side. She marveled at how thick the fog was - thicker than usual; it almost looked like a gray mass in the air, staring at it as she was, which only made her wonder more about what lurked inside. What was hiding in the fog?

She went up to examine the stone fountains, and it was then that she noticed something unusual. She noticed a discarded page of a letter lying by one of the fountains – the farthest in the back. Interesting. Who would leave a letter lying around in a place like this? Someone who had visited and left in a hurry, perhaps?



She picked up the letter from the ground, growing more intrigued as she read it.

In my restless dreams, I see that town,

Silent Hill.

You promised you'd take me

there again someday.

But you never did. 

Well, I'm alone there now...



In our “special place”.

Waiting for you...



Hmm. That was interesting, she thought silently. Actually, it was kind of romantic, she sighed wistfully, thinking about the couple whom the letter was obviously focused around. She would be glad to get a letter such as this from someone she cared about, if she were in that position.

She thought about the “you” referenced in the letter. She wondered if the person ever found who was waiting for them. She hoped so. It would be a lovely story, if a couple could be reunited in this manner after months or years apart.

Placing the letter on the fountain, she decided to move on. There was no sense in getting wistful over someone she didn't know, especially when her own life was at stake in this place. She wasn't going to do that, but she wasn't going to be disrespectful and throw it away like a piece of garbage either. If she needed it later for some reason, she would know there to look.

Assuming the wind didn't blow it away...

The porch of the Lake View hotel was beautifully designed. This was the kind of architecture you would find in an antiquated home; the kind you could sit in and watch the world go by without a care. Given that there was a chair already, it was a tempting proposition, just to do that for a little while. But she would accomplish nothing by standing still. For some reason, she had been brought here. Julie went inside.



She was greeted by near complete darkness. Julie cursed that she hadn't brought a flashlight from...wherever she was brought here from. The light from outside provided some clarity, and once her eyes adjusted to the setting, she realized it wasn't quite as dark as it seemed at first. But she was still going to have to find a flashlight around here if the rest of the hotel as dark as it was here.

There was an assortment of rooms in the area. She already saw the hallway was a tight fit, but there were at least five doors in the vicinity. There was one that appeared to be a restaurant of some sort. Julie could barely make out the sign's writing, but that was exactly what it was. Most of them were locked, from what it looked like. She felt around blindly in the hallway, groping around for a handle she could turn. By blind chance, she stumbled onto a door that was unlocked, and emerged into a brand new area of the hotel.

The room was vast and dark, with a vase nearby and an area that appeared to be a check-in counter. It was obvious she was in the lobby of the hotel. There was a little more light in some places than in the previous hall, due to the light that streamed in from the outside. And ahead was the front entrance, settled at the center of an expanse that showed just how big the hotel truly was. The curtains were drawn down over the windows. Only the front door was truly illuminated from the sunlight streaming through it. 

Julie looked around the lobby at first. Nothing too interesting to be found. She focused back on the reception area. In a very unusual occurrence, she spied a notice on the front desk of the reception office. To her surprise, it was handwritten, and that wasn't the most astounding thing about it.

She found herself growing intrigued as she read it...

Mrs. Julie Gillespie,

We've been waiting for you to arrive. We hope you enjoy your experience as you did when you first stayed here on your honeymoon.

Please make yourself at home. And if you need any assistance, be sure to look for the current resident.

Julie set the note down, puzzled. What the hell? Who would leave a message to her like this? It sounded like they were waiting for her, but that was impossible. And the reference to her previous name was especially unsettling.

She hadn't gone by that name in a very long time, since Chris changed their name to Summers. Julie didn't like it that much, but it was better than Gillespie. She would have preferred to take Chris' original name of Mechler, but it seemed Chris was reluctant to return to that period in his life. Pity. She understood why he did it, though. 

At least they didn't call her Julia. She could never really stand that name, which was why she never used it anymore. It just wasn't her, despite the beautiful ring to it. And considering the tendencies of the woman who gave it to her, it was something she definitely didn't want to be associated with.

But the question remained: who would know her name in this place? Everyone she knew in this town was dead. And the hotel staff wasn't even an option. They couldn't possibly have been waiting for her 21 years, or however long it had been.

And what did they mean by the current resident? This place was obviously deserted. Unless they meant the monsters...

In which case, she definitely didn't want to need any of their help.

Shaking her head at the bizarreness of it all, Julie went to check around. Things in the hotel lobby definitely hadn't changed much since she was there. The lobby was expansive, with a grand carpeted staircase in the center of the room. Vases are other objects adorned the corners of the room, along with an elaborate music box in the center of the room before the staircase. There was a dark, quietly reverent aura to the hotel with all the lights out and only the outside daylight left to provide clarity. In another place, it would have been creepy, but here, it was almost heartening to have the hotel be so peaceful, considering the dangers outside. Like she had never left...

She went up to the music box. It was a beautiful contraption, standing taller than her by several inches. The cabinet was made of oak, and was very well preserved, considering it was already an antique when she was here the first time. There was a metal plate in the middle that Julie knew was part of the music box's playing capabilities, and there was a wooden base underneath. Strangely there were three grooves in the middle; Julie didn't know what they could be for. Julie remembered when she heard the music box's song for the first time. It was like magic to her ears, and she never forgot how sweet that melody sounded. Unfortunately it seemed to be broken; it wasn't playing music no matter what she did with it.

Oh well; too bad. She would have loved to have heard that song again...

She went back to the reception office. To her surprise, it was unlocked, requiring no key to open. That was kind of strange. She would have thought a key was necessary to open the reception office. Entering inside, she found a shelf mounted on the wall for keys to all the hotel rooms. To her disbelief, there was a key to one of the rooms. Picking it up, Julie noted the key's room number. Room 302...that was the room she and Chris stayed in on their honeymoon. That was something to contemplate...but not at the moment. She had other things to do right now. Shrugging off the unsettling notion, she put it in her pocket. It might come in useful later. There was nothing else of notice in the office, so she left.

Although she wasn't really going to leave yet, she decided to see if she could leave the hotel through this area. It might be a necessity in case she really needed to leave this place quickly.

Trying the front door, she found that it was locked. Locked! Julie thought in disbelief. Why would they keep the front door locked and not the back?

Was it a coincidence, or was there more to it? She guessed they wanted to keep her trapped in here, whoever 'they' were. She wasn't going to walk all the way back there to those buildings.

Staring around at the surroundings confirmed what Julie already knew: she wasn't going to find help in this place. She had hoped... no, she had prayed...that there was someone to be found in this place. But alas, it seemed the very same condition that had afflicted the rest of the outside surroundings had afflicted this place as well. While she couldn't be sure the whole town was like, things were looking grim.

Unless the place was just plain closed...

But if so, why would it be unlocked from the back door?

Forcing herself to remain calm, she knew she needed to find someone to help. But for now, she was stuck here. There was only one thing to do. She needed to explore the rest of the hotel, to see whether there was anything that could be useful. That meant taking the staircase up and seeing what was on the second flood. She had no idea what was waiting for her, but at least she had a weapon, of sorts. She wasn't completely defenseless.

Climbing the stairs, she stood for a moment in indecision. She decided to go left into the next area. It was as a good a place as any to start.

The hallway was much smaller than the one on the first floor, before the lobby. Unfortunately there wasn't much worth nothing. There was an elevator, but it didn't work. She pressed the button repeatedly to no avail. Most of the doors were locked, and the one that wasn't lead into a store room with nothing special to find. There was a map, out near the elevator. Julie stuffed it into her pocket as best she could. Onto the right then.

She went across the second floor to the other side.

This area was similar to the one she had left. But already there was something different. It was slightly more lit than the previous hall, and there was more than just one section to it. To her left, the hallway turned into another set of rooms. Julie turned the corner and found something very unusual. It looked like it was a cloak of some sort, lying at the foot of the window, at the end. Julie thought of the monster lying out there on the street, but she dismissed that thought. Whatever it was, the object wasn't moving. There was no sound coming from it either, and she could see no arms or head. Had someone left something covered up here? A package of some sort?

Julie carefully approached it – she wanted to poke it with the pipe to see what it was. It was rather large, and unusually shaped. Still, it didn't seem to be making any noises. A part of her warned her that this was stupid, but her curiosity was too much. She had to know what it was. She was reaching to pull back the cloak when a large white arm suddenly emerged from the black cloth, slapping down on her torso. Julie was sent reeling back, until she crashed against the wall. The creature turned, and Julie noted what looked like the skulls of two little girls, or two feminine porcelain masks, with long dark hair, protruding from the cape-like cloak. The creature began to charge at her, all the while emitting a noise that sounded like a shrieking infant. Pushing back the shock and pain, Julie grabbed her pipe and swung it in an arc against the skull on the left, stopping it in its tracks. The creature groaned in pain, and attempted to swipe at her with one of its enormous hands. She struck it again before it accomplished that, and as it started to back along on its hands, she struck it repeatedly with the pipe, until the creature fell to the ground. Julie wasn't taking chances, though, and she continued smashing the pipe down on its form until the creature finally stopped moving. 

She backed away from the monster. Her heart was pumping a thousand times a minute, it seemed. The confrontation had left her tired, breathing hard from the combined energy and fright. She opened her hand; the pipe fell to the floor with a metallic thud. This whole situation seemed surreal and dreamlike; she couldn't believe she was standing here. She was astonished at how quickly she had defended herself. No hesitations, no second thoughts about it. She had done it instinctively, without thinking. It was a little frightening, almost. But now the battle was over. The adrenaline faded from her body, and as it did, the pain returned.

Julie knelt down on the ground, holding her arms close to her as she bent over in pain. Her chest hurt, so badly she could barely move. She feared a few of her ribs might have broken, but thankfully it didn't seem that bad. She tried to hold back the tears and succeeded, for the most part. She stayed there for a quite a while, until she finally had the strength to stand up straight again.

Julie roughly made her way over to the body. She almost would have used the pipe as a walking aid, if it were long enough. She was still breathing hard, to say nothing of how tired she felt. Her chest was still sore; the ache lingered deep inside. God that thing hit hard! She was lucky the monster hadn't struck her harder.

She examined the creature up close. The corpse was still not moving, which was a sure sign it was dead. It looked like the creature she had seen outside, laying dead on the road. The only difference was that its cloak was darker, looking more like cloth. Its arms were thinner than the previous one’s, also. Its form was huge for its shape; oval and cut at the halfway point. Or was that the cloth? Shifting the skull with her boot, Julie saw a glimpse of the faces of two little girls, or feminine porcelain masks just as she'd thought. She let it fall to face the floor. Either possibility was disturbing.

What was this thing? She asked in horror. It was like nothing she had ever seen. How could these things be here? She was in serious trouble if there more of these things around. And there were almost certainly more of them. There wasn't going to be just one of these things in the whole entire town. To say nothing of the hotel – was she the only occupant in this place that wasn't one of these things?

She looked up at the ceiling of the hotel. How many of these things were wandering around up there, looking for something to attack? Was it even possible to know? Julie suddenly got a fearful feeling. She was alone, armed with a pipe, against what looked like an unknown number of creatures of unknown origins. She almost didn't want to go further, but she realized she had to explore the hotel. She had to find a gun or something, so that she could defend herself. She doubted she would find one here, but maybe she would get lucky. And she still didn't know the reason why she was here. No, she couldn't stop here, even if she wanted to.

It took about thirteen more minutes before she felt well enough to continue. At least she still had her watch. Something to be grateful for. She could only guess at how delayed it was, though. She needed to explore the rest of the hotel. Even if it was crawling with these things, she had to know what else was here.

She could leave right now, but she would be leaving without any items that were to be found, and any info that might be gained from the hotel.

She was going to stay here. If she got injured or needed to escape...well, she would deal with that when the time came.

The hallway where the rooms were was darker than the others. Julie could barely see where she was going. She needed a flashlight around here – another thing she would have to find around here. Fortunately there didn't seem to be anything in the corridor. Julie stepped into one of the rooms – the only room that was open it seemed, after stumbling in through the door.

The room looked exactly the ones she remembered. It was modestly furnished, with just enough to satisfy the people who were staying there. Strangely enough, the lights were on despite the state of the rest of the hotel. Julie pulled out the map and examined it – judging by the doors, she had to be in Room 214.

She looked around the room. There wasn't much to speak of in the room, merely the usual standard items for a hotel suite. There was a lamp in one corner, a closet for your clothes, a nightstand and some random portraits, and a TV near the window. The curtains were pulled down, casting the room in a dim and muted light. There was only one thing that was noteworthy and it immediately caught her attention. To her utter surprise, laying on the bed in plain view was a gun. Julie picked up the handgun, unable to believe her luck. What were the chances of finding exactly what she needed in a place like this? Someone had clearly left it here, but who in their right mind would bring a gun to this place? And why would they leave it right in the open where anyone could see it? She examined the shiny metallic weapon. It was a revolver, and it looked like it was the kind that would pack a serious punch. It would definitely be a huge advantage against those monsters, that was for sure.

She was about to leave when she noticed a paper sticking out from the under the bed. Kneeling to pick it up, she saw that it was a slip of paper. The paper was torn from a larger page, and there was something scribbled on it, in small but discernible letters.

“I can't stand it anymore. Those doctors just don't understand, and they only want to get paid anyway. The medicines make me sick, and yet they say I'm only better when I'm taking them. If I'm only better when I'm on the medicines, then what purpose does my life have? My family doesn't care about me. They came to visit me several times, but so what? I can see it in their eyes. Nobody cares about me. It'll be better for everyone if I'm gone, and not a burden. At least it'll be in a nice, quiet place. So quiet, so peaceful...”

Julie set the note down with a grim expression. The note ended there. So the owner of this weapon had decided to end it all. She wanted to feel sorry for them, but whoever it was had left her a valuable weapon. She checked the cylinder to see whether it was loaded. There were five bullets in the chamber! - She guessed the missing one was the culprit. That brought her down to a serious level, but she put it out of her mind without a second thought. She couldn't feel sorry for that person right now. She looked around the room some more and managed to find six more bullets, lying in a corner of the room. She couldn't help the rush that passed through her. This would definitely help her out against those creatures.

The hallway was still dark as when she left it, and again Julie was reminded that she needed to find a flashlight around here. She wasn't sure she would find anything else here, but there were still a few doors she hadn't tried. Suddenly, she heard something that sounded like a faint crash. Remembering the map, she realized it had to be at the end of the hall in Room 220. She raced toward the end of the hallway, though not in too much of a rush – she wasn't in a hurry to fight any more monsters.

Room 220 stood like a foreboding omen. To her surprise, the room was unlocked; she half-expected this to be something she couldn't investigate. Her heart started to pound. She carefully entered the room, making sure to open the door as quietly as possible. She didn't want to announce her presence to something obviously, if there was something dangerous in the room. 



She clutched her gun tightly, ready to use it if necessary. She wasn't sure what was lurking in the room, but she was already too far in to back out now. The room was the same as the other on first glance, with modest draperies and the standard basic comforts for its guests. She was poised to enter a battle, but to her utter surprise, it wasn't a monster that it was in the room. It was a woman.

A back clothed in red met Julie's sight. She was wearing a skirt darker in color that looked like something a “party girl” would wear, and her long dark boots were definitely giving off a sensual vibe. She seemed lost in her own thoughts, staring at the pieces of a broken vase on the ground. So that was what the noise was. Had she broken it? Or had it fallen on the ground on its own?

Julie was tentative, but decided to make herself known.

“Hello?”

The woman turned, and Julie was blessed with the face of a beautiful olive skinned woman.



There was a moment of stepping back as the woman realized she wasn't alone. She clutched a hand to her chest, visibly startled by the intrusion of another person. Julie quickly hid her gun to the side once she realized the woman was unarmed. She didn't want to startle her.

The woman's eyes shifted into a wide stance as her surprise played out.

“Calm down, I'm not here to hurt you,” Julie said, holding one hand up in caution, as a gesture of not meaning any harm. The woman kept her hands up in caution, instinctively ready in case she needed to plead or defend herself. When she realized that Julie was serious, she gradually lowered her guard. She didn't notice the revolver Julie kept at the back of her hip.



The exotic woman relaxed a bit, letting out a great sigh of relief.

“You scared me,” she said, sounding somewhat out of breath. It was obvious the intrusion by someone else had shaken her. Now that it was settled, though, she seemed to be adjusting quickly to her presence.

She regarded Julie with a curious look. Her eyes seemed to shine in excitement.

“Finally, another human being!”

The voice was sweet, with a hint of a Hispanic accent. Julie found it oddly comforting, to realize she sounded somewhat normal, at least. She seemed to be wanting to embrace her, but kept her distance instead.  

“Did they figure out what's going on?” she asked excitedly.

“What do you mean?” Julie asked, confused.

  

The woman looked crestfallen. “Aren't you here to rescue me?” she asked in confusion. It was obvious her hopes for something were falling rapidly.

“Sorry, I'm just exploring around here,” Julie said, hating having to crush the woman's hopes. It was obvious she was waiting for someone to find her here, but why was the greater question.

“Oh,” the woman said, turning her back on the other. But Julie wasn't going to let it go that easily.

“What do you mean, rescue you?” Julie inquired. “What happened?”

The woman turned back to her. “Wait a minute. If we're going to ask questions here, why don't we start with you, for instance?” she said, hands on her hips. “What are you doing here? What's your name?”

“Julie Summers,” Julie replied, with a shrug. “I just found myself here all of a sudden. I've just been exploring this place out since I got here. Everyone else is gone,” she said. She chose her words carefully, not wanting to go into her situation. She didn't want this woman to think she was crazy, after all.

“What about you?” she asked, changing the subject. “What's your name?”



The woman seemed to warm up to her question.

“My name's Cynthia,” she said, in that flawless voice. “Cynthia Velasquez.”

Julie nodded in acknowledgment. She thought she sounded Spanish. Not to mention, she looked exotic in face and skin. Very beautiful, in fact. She pushed that thought to the side.



“Cynthia,” she tried out the name. “What are you doing here?”

Cynthia shrugged. "I'd gone away with the intention of taking some time off from work. I was on vacation here. Everything was fine until a few days ago. I fell asleep in my hotel room and when I woke up, everyone was gone. There was this mist lingering around too, which is kind of strange. I didn't see anyone around, so I decided to stay here and wait to see if somebody else shows up. I've been here for the past three days."

"Three days?" Julie asked incredulously. "How did you stay here for so long? What about food?"

 

The woman shrugged. "There was some downstairs in some of the rooms. I simply took what I needed." She paused. "Why? Do you think it has something to do with what's going on?" she asked.

Julie frowned in confusion. All the rooms were locked downstairs. Either someone was opening and closing them again for Cynthia, or else, it meant that Cynthia perceived the hotel differently, somehow. She had no idea how that was possible, but it seemed to be a reasonable theory given the circumstances. They had one thing in common, in that they both saw it abandoned, but there was a certain other difference that mattered. She doubted Cynthia had a key to this place, if she just woke up here the same way Julie did.

It was incredible that she had been here for a while. Julie tried to imagine Cynthia staying in the hotel for three days, with no clue as to where everybody around her went, or what was happening. She must have been scared. Waking up with no one else around you, in a strange place where you didn't know where you were. Julie would have been scared, alright. She was scared, with her current situation, not knowing what was happening. She couldn't imagine being here alone with nobody else for more than a few hours.

"Cynthia...do you even know where you are?" Julie asked.

"Yeah...I went outside a few times," Cynthia replied. "This is the Lake View Hotel, isn't it? There are some stories about this place. Do you think it's responsible for what's happening?"

"No..." Julie said hesitantly. Cynthia didn't seem to believe her, but she didn't remark on it.

She seemed to shift gears as she smiled wryly.

"What about you?" Cynthia asked. "What's your story?"

Unsure of how to answer the question, Julie went for honesty. “I don't know what's going on. It's like I fell asleep at home and woke up here,” she said. She neglected to say she had been in a coffin when she woke up. That was a little too weird, even for the situation.

Suddenly she realized what it was she'd said. Julie felt like groaning in exasperation. She almost smacked herself when she realized her mistake. Damn it! She cursed herself silently. She just had to go and say that, didn't she? Now this woman was going to think she was a nut case.

“Really?” Cynthia inquired, with a skeptical glance; one eyebrow raised.

“I know it sounds crazy, but you have to believe me,” Julie said quickly, wanting not to give this woman the wrong impression. She must sound crazy, and not in a good way, she realized. It was one thing to wake up here already being in the town, but all the way from home? That was a little too much of a stretch to believe.

Cynthia apparently felt the same way, unsure of whether to believe her.



Suddenly she had a change of heart.

“I guess it's not so crazy, you waking up in this place,” she added, as an afterthought, with a slight smile.

Julie sighed in relief. It looked like she wasn't going to have to explain herself further, after all.

Finally, Cynthia noticed the gun Julie held at her side, behind her hand.



"That's an interesting gun you have there," she said, backing up a little. Her comment took Julie by surprise.

"Oh? I found this in a room a few doors down. Some guy left it there," Julie said, holding up the gun to Cynthia in a disarming gesture.

"You don't know him, do you?" Julie asked. Suddenly she realized what she said. "Sorry, stupid question."



"It's okay. No, I don't know him. I haven't seen anyone here but you," Cynthia said.

She gave Julie an amused, although uncomfortable look.

"You're not planning to use it either?" Cynthia asked wryly.

"No, of course not! Not on you, anyway," Julie shook her head.

Cynthia stared at her like she was unsure of that. Like she was wondering whether Julie was a serial killer who would strike at her at any moment…

"Well, if you're not here to rescue me, I guess I better get going," Cynthia said.



The other woman was alarmed.

"Wait, you can't go out there alone!" Julie protested. Cynthia looked at her in askance.

"There are monsters out there. They're some type of creatures that attack you when you get close to them," Julie said, trying to make it clear she wasn't joking. She wasn't surprised when the other woman wasn't as believing.



She almost laughed. "Monsters?" Cynthia asked in disbelief.

"Yes. I encountered one of them outside in the hall," Julie said. "I had to use a pipe to kill it," she said, remembering the pipe she had left in the other room.



"Really?" Cynthia inquired, with that same skeptical glance as before.

"I'm not lying!" Julie insisted, trying to get the other woman to see her reason. She knew this sounded crazy, but it was no more crazy than their situation at the moment.

"Hey, I believe you," Cynthia said, but she made no effort to stay where she was. And Julie knew that she had to convince her otherwise. She was probably staring at her like she was a mental patient, but with no weapon and no preparation, she wouldn't last a minute out there if she ran into some monster.

"Wait," Julie tried again. "You can't go out there without a weapon."

"Hon, I'll be all right," Cynthia said, smiling at her. "I'm not some useless fluff. I can take care of myself."

Before Julie could object, she casually left the room.

Julie was left standing alone in the room. Shit. This wasn't good. Julie couldn't help thinking: she had sent her to her death. Well, she hadn't sent her directly; she had gone on her own. But she couldn't hold her back from going forcibly. There was no way she was going to convince her that way, and she wasn't about to use her gun to threaten her. She would just have to hope Cynthia really did know what she was doing, and that she could defend herself without a weapon.



She decided to explore the room Cynthia had occupied. There wasn't much to examine in the room. Clearly Cynthia would have noticed if there was. She examined the shards of the vase Cynthia had been staring at. She wondered whether Cynthia had knocked it over, or whether it had fallen over on its own. There was nothing remarkable about it; she wondered whether it was just a method of attracting her attention? Maybe something had knocked it over, prompting Cynthia to wake up and her to rush the room to meet her. It seemed like a possible scenario, given the circumstances.

Now what? was the obvious question. She supposed she should go after Cynthia, but she wasn't sure the woman would appreciate her following her like some sort of stalker. And there was the issue of the other rooms. She was going to have to explore the rest of the hotel, but that seemed like a daunting task at the moment. Would she have to explore the entire hotel before she found something of value? Maybe she would be better taking what few items she items she could find and going back to the town. Then again, she had already found a valuable discovery in Cynthia. Maybe there was another valuable discovery waiting to be found.

She was still thinking when she felt it. There was a moment before something changed. Suddenly, the air felt strange around her. Something wasn't right. Out of the blue, she cried out as she was suddenly stricken by a fearsome headache. Damn, her head was pounding. It felt like someone was drilling into her mind. Julie tried to stay upright, but she crumbled under the pressure, falling to her knees, gripping her forehead tightly as the sensation of vertigo overtook her. The world seemed to be shifting around her, pulsing along with her diminishing view as her headache intensified to the point of agony. Julie cried quietly to herself, as she began to feel faint and incorporeal. The pain was too much, and it was stronger than anything she had felt before. And as she was passing out, she heard the faint sound of sirens outside the .

The sound of sirens was heard over the hotel as she gave herself over to the darkness.

~*~

Julie awoke with a groan, as she returned back to consciousness. The world was dark around her, so much that she was unable to discern any detail about anything. She groaned as she pushed herself up. She held her head from the pounding headache that had overtaken her, but even that was already fading, instantly disappearing as though by some magic force that was influencing the area. What the hell was that? It was like one blinding headache had overtaken her one minute, and the next she had woken up in another world. Like a shift in reality had taken place, if that made any sense. And the building around her was obviously affected as well, judging by her surroundings. There was no way the building could have changed that drastically on its own, just by losing a couple lights.

She looked around at her surroundings. The room was dark around her, from the walls to the desk, with nary a bit of light to be found. The air was humid around her, feeling warm and muggy. She wiped the sweat off her brow, sighing as she did so. It was like she was in hell, she thought. She was tempted to strip off her shirt, but there was no way she was going to run around here in her bra. Bad idea, considering the sharp clawed monsters that were crawling around here. Not until she had an undershirt, at least. Besides, that sounded like something her daughter would do.

She was still in the bedroom in the hotel. The few details she could discern about the things around her overwhelmingly confirmed that. The change in the atmosphere in the room was remarkable. How could the change have happened so quickly, going from comfortable to feeling like she was in a boiler room somewhere?



The room held a dreadful atmosphere within it now, and she was almost hesitating to take a single step outside its confines. God only knew what was waiting for her out there, in the hallway. How far was the extent of the change in the hotel and to what extremes did it go in the other areas? Suddenly she was feeling very self-conscious in the hotel room, with only her gun and a pipe to protect her, and afraid. She was afraid. She would be foolish to try and deny it. Only a person with no common sense whatsoever wouldn’t be afraid in a situation like this. Cynthia was long gone. There was no one else in the hotel she could rely on for help, no one she could call to give her aid. She wished to God she had convinced her to stay, so that she wouldn’t be alone in this place.

She was almost lost on what to do. There were no people around, no way to reach the outside world...if the whole town was like this, what was she going to do? She had no purpose here besides survival, having been brought here against her will. She didn't even have an idea of who has brought her here. If only she had an idea of who her brought her here, maybe she could begin to develop a plan of sorts. But she didn't even know that! All she had were flashes of images; dark and hazy. She almost felt like crying, were it not for the fact that it would not accomplish anything. She was already in a mess without wasting unnecessary energy on stupid things like tears.

It wasn’t fair. A few hours ago she had been at home. Or at least, she assumed it was a few hours. It could have been days for all she knew, since she’d been brought here. But she had been home, and she was happy. And now she was here. What kind of sadistic being was threatening enough to bring her back here of all places, against her own will? She knew there were powers in the town that could not be easily explained, but there was no reason whatsoever for her to be summoned here. She had done nothing wrong.

She took a breath to compose herself. She was not going to survive this if she started worrying about every little thing and complaining needlessly about circumstances that she couldn’t change. She needed to take this one step at a time, letting herself carefully get adjusted to the situation.

Damn it, why did she have to get dragged back here? She had left this town long ago, never to return. And now she found herself here again. She couldn’t remember anything about how she got here. There were flashes of memory, brutality, and something attacking her, but she couldn’t remember clearly what it was. It all seemed like one big nightmare.

Julie took another breath. She had to calm down. This time it worked. She felt herself settle into a calmer attitude, as she allowed herself to focus on the situation at hand. You have to calm yourself, she said to herself, trying to force herself to remain in that focused state of mind. She gripped her gun tightly, prepared for anything that might come her way. If there were things waiting for her out there, she would just have to take them as they came. There was no way she would accomplish anything in staying here all day, much as she wanted. Her breath lingered visibly in front of her in a condensed frost. This place was freezing around her. Suddenly, in the span of a second, the area had gone from sweltering hot to bitingly frigid, and the change was shocking. It was like this place was in an unstable state of change, and the environment was unable to settle on one atmosphere or another. If this could happen so quickly to the place, what else would happen to the atmosphere? Would it suddenly turn poisonous? But she couldn’t worry about things like that. The most important thing was that she get out there and start exploring. She wished she had a match for lighting, but it would probably just freeze anyway. A lighter probably wouldn’t do much better. Not to mention, she didn’t smoke. The only hope was if the town was courteous enough to leave her a flashlight lying around here somewhere.

She remembered an old saying she once heard: “once you enter Silent Hill, you never leave.” The sentiment was an ominous one. She knew it was motivated by the tourism industry that made the town seem like a paradise on Earth, but in light of recent events it had definitely come to take on a sinister meaning for those who chose to enter the town. Well, Julie wasn’t going to let that happen to her. She was going to make it out of this town, no matter how much hard work it took.

Suddenly, Julie realized that there was an opening in the wall leading to another room! She proceeded further away from the bed, and realized that something had torn off a large segment of the wall, making a rough hole large enough through which an adult human being could make passage. The door to the bedroom was locked and impossible to open, but the opening leading from the hotel room into another area was definitely a possibility for getting out of this place now. Assuming it led to the other room. Technically it was supposed to lead next door, but Julie knew this place well enough to know that it could easily be a portal to another part of the town or some place even worse. But what choice did she have? It was either stay here and wait for Cynthia to come back or someone else to rescue her, unlikely, or else take matters into her own hands. And she needed to get moving. Cynthia didn’t know about the monsters from first-hand experience, and if she didn’t take her seriously, she was going to get hurt. That was just the simple truth of the matter. Summoning all her courage, the quiet brunette woman made a decision. Gathering her gun and pipe tightly and praying she knew what she was doing, Julie crossed the threshold, and resigned herself to whatever awaited her on the other side.

The town awaited her.